Los Angeles Black Worker Center

What Los Angeles Black Worker Center does

The Los Angeles Black Worker Center (LABWC) is a member-led nonprofit organization established in 2009 (some sources reference 2011) and headquartered at 5350 Crenshaw Boulevard in South Los Angeles. Its mission is to increase access to quality jobs, reduce employment discrimination, and improve industries that employ Black workers in Los Angeles through collective organizing, advocacy, and direct member services. The organization targets Black workers across construction, healthcare, public sector, security, and service industries where Black Angelenos face disproportionately high unemployment (around 20% county-wide and 22% in the Crenshaw neighborhood) and account for 35% of the low-wage workforce despite being less than 9% of the population.

LABWC's programmatic portfolio centers on four offerings: Ready 2 Work, a three-month job-skills workshop with resume, interview, and workplace-navigation training; the Legal Clinic, which pairs members with law-student advocates for free guidance on discrimination, wage theft, and health-and-safety issues; the Workforce Equity Demonstration, a public-sector placement pipeline run with the 1000 Strong coalition that has achieved a 59% placement rate for Black workers; and the Stewards Council (My Siblings Keeper), a peer-to-peer leadership and workplace-rights training program. These programs are supplemented by advocacy campaigns including the 1000 Strong campaign for 1,000 public-sector jobs, the Charter Reform initiative targeting the Los Angeles City Charter, and Senate Bill 16 advocacy for local civil and human rights enforcement.

LABWC generates no fee revenue and operates as a donation- and grant-funded entity, supplemented by in-kind partnerships with Legal Aid at Work, UCLA, the City of Los Angeles, and the broader Southern California Black Worker Hub network spanning Los Angeles, the Inland Empire, and San Diego. Its go-to-market is community-led: members are recruited through street-level outreach, social media, Worker Wednesdays virtual meetings, and coalition events, with services delivered in-person and online at no cost. A 2024-2029 strategic plan and a $2.5M building-support donation in 2024 underpin the organization's shift toward a permanent South LA facility and expanded programmatic capacity.

Name

Los Angeles Black Worker Center

Legal name

Los Angeles Black Worker Center

Website

https://lablackworkercenter.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Los Angeles Black Worker Center is a member-led nonprofit founded in 2009 that organizes Black workers in Los Angeles through job-skills training, free legal clinics, public-sector placement pipelines, and advocacy campaigns aimed at reducing employment discrimination and expanding access to quality jobs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Worker Advocacy and Community Organizing Services

NAICS

Employment Placement Agencies (561311), Vocational Rehabilitation Services (6243), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Racial & Ethnic Justice Organizations (BPAGAFAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Labor, Worker Rights & Employment Policy Advocacy (BPAGAFAH), Workforce Development & Inclusive Employment (Job Training, Placement) (BPAGALAB)

Keywords

• Worker advocacy
• Workforce development
• Community organizing
• Employment justice
• Legal aid services

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: The organization relies on financial support from donors to sustain programming and advocacy efforts. Donations help engage in comprehensive efforts addressing racial and economic inequity.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Los Angeles Black Worker Center is a member-led nonprofit organization that provides job skills training, free legal clinics, workforce development, peer support programs, and advocacy campaigns for Black workers in Los Angeles. It runs specific programs (Ready 2 Work, Legal Clinic, Workforce Equity Demonstration, Stewards Council) and campaigns (1000 Strong, Charter Reform) to increase access to quality jobs, reduce employment discrimination, and improve industries that employ Black workers.

Product overview

The Los Angeles Black Worker Center operates as a member-led nonprofit organization offering a suite of programs and campaigns focused on economic justice for Black workers. The core programmatic offerings include Ready 2 Work (job skills training), the Legal Clinic (free legal support), Workforce Equity Demonstration (public sector job placement), and Stewards Council (peer-to-peer worker support). These programs are complemented by advocacy campaigns including the 1000 Strong campaign and Charter Reform initiative, alongside a Resource Directory providing community support materials. The organization functions as a coalition builder, partnering with the Southern California Black Worker Hub network, unions, and government entities to advance systemic change.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Ready 2 Work A series of workshops providing job skills training and industry-specific mentorship to Black workers, including resume development, interview preparation, and workplace navigation guidance over a three-month period.
• Legal Clinic Free legal consultation and one-on-one guidance from law students for Black workers facing workplace issues including employment discrimination, wage theft, and health and safety violations.
• Workforce Equity Demonstration (WED) High-road workforce development partnerships between the 1000 Strong coalition and local governments providing direct pathways to public sector employment for Black workers through intentional recruitment, hiring, training, and mentorship.
• Stewards Council (My Siblings Keeper) Peer-to-peer program where Black workers develop skills and knowledge to address workplace issues, including training on wage theft, discrimination, anti-Blackness, workplace rights, and safe work environments.
• Southern California Black Worker Hub Regional network of Black Worker Centers across Los Angeles, the Inland Empire, and San Diego working together to create economic opportunity and inclusion for Black workers in Southern California.

Quantifiable outcome

• 59% placement rate in Workforce Equity Demonstration project
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Legal Aid at WorkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to provide legal clinics assisting Black workers experiencing workplace injustices. Law students partner with LABWC to assist workers dealing with employment discrimination, wage theft, and health and safety violations.
• Southern California Black Worker Hub for Regional OrganizingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork of Black Worker Centers across Los Angeles, the Inland Empire, and San Diego working together to create economic opportunity for Black workers. Coordinates efforts, leverages policies, funding, and programming to build collective capacity.
• 1000 Strong CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition of labor, social service, and community partners working with the City of Los Angeles on Workforce Equity Demonstration projects. Creates pathways to place Black workers into career-track public sector jobs.
• City of Los AngelescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with City of Los Angeles for public sector workforce development. Commitment to hire 200 Black workers and ongoing collaboration on workforce equity initiatives.
• UCLAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership documented through the 'Workforce Warriors: Los Angeles Black Worker Center's Bold Battle for Equity' report evaluating the first two years of the WED Project using a mixed methods research justice model.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Community Coalition: South LA-based grassroots organization addressing systemic inequities affecting Black and Brown communities through organizing, policy advocacy, and civic engagement — comparable in geography, scale, and racial-justice orientation.
• National Black Worker Center Project: Umbrella network of Black Worker Centers across the U.S. Direct coordinating body for LABWC's regional work and the closest peer in mission, model, and constituency.
• Bay Area Black Worker Center: San Francisco Bay Area affiliate of the National Black Worker Center network operating the same member-led, race-explicit worker center model with similar job placement and policy advocacy programs.
• Strategic Concepts in Organizing and Policy Education (SCOPE): Los Angeles grassroots organization building power in Black and Brown communities through organizing, policy advocacy, and leadership development — directly comparable to LABWC in geography, scale, and base-building model.
• Chicago Workers Collaborative (formerly Chicago Black Worker Center): Chicago-based worker center with a Black worker focus, providing comparable workforce development, advocacy, and member-led organizing services in a different Midwest metro.
• Koreatown Immigrant Workers Alliance (KIWA): Los Angeles-based worker center organizing low-wage immigrant workers. Uses the same member-led, workforce-equity model with a different base community, providing strong operational comparability.
• A New Way of Life: South LA-based nonprofit providing workforce development, reentry support, and legal services to formerly incarcerated Black community members — closely comparable in geography, constituency, and program mix.

Broad incumbents

• Legal Aid at Work: California legal services nonprofit that runs LABWC's Legal Clinic partnership. Provides employment-law counsel across a broader constituency and is a key operational peer for LABWC's legal services work.

Regional players

• Inland Empire Black Worker Center: Affiliated Black Worker Center in the Inland Empire operating under the same Southern California Black Worker Hub as LABWC; comparable model but serves a different sub-region.

Others

• UCLA Labor Center: Academic research partner that co-authored the WED evaluation report. Indirectly comparable as a workforce-equity research and capacity-building partner in the same LA ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/labwc
• Instagraminstagram.com/lablackworkercenter
• Xx.com/blackwkrcenter

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Los Angeles Black Worker Center